"A Most Peculiar Man" as written by and Paul Simon....
He was a most peculiar man.
That's what Mrs. Riordan said and she should know;
She lived upstairs from him
She said he was a most peculiar man.
He was a most peculiar man.
He lived all alone within a house,
Within a room, within himself,
A most peculiar man.
He had no friends, he seldom spoke
And no one in turn ever spoke to him,
'Cause he wasn't friendly and he didn't care
And he wasn't like them.
Oh, no! he was a most peculiar man.
He died last Saturday.
He turned on the gas and he went to sleep
With the windows closed so he'd never wake up
To his silent world and his tiny room;
And Mrs. Riordan says he has a brother somewhere
Who should be notified soon.
And all the people said, "What a shame that he's dead,
But wasn't he a most peculiar man?"
That's what Mrs. Riordan said and she should know;
She lived upstairs from him
She said he was a most peculiar man.
He was a most peculiar man.
He lived all alone within a house,
Within a room, within himself,
A most peculiar man.
He had no friends, he seldom spoke
And no one in turn ever spoke to him,
'Cause he wasn't friendly and he didn't care
And he wasn't like them.
Oh, no! he was a most peculiar man.
He died last Saturday.
He turned on the gas and he went to sleep
With the windows closed so he'd never wake up
To his silent world and his tiny room;
And Mrs. Riordan says he has a brother somewhere
Who should be notified soon.
And all the people said, "What a shame that he's dead,
But wasn't he a most peculiar man?"
Lyrics submitted by kevin
"A Most Peculiar Man" as written by Paul Simon
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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We don't know that this guy was a genius had insight into others...probably not as he was so withdrawn/depressed. Yes it's fascinating...how did he get this way? A tragedy, really. Like he did on many songs of that period, Simon is making a social commentary on a society that produces unhappy ,alienated people like this.
I listened to this song too often in high school 40 years ago. As Bob Dylan wrote," I was so much older then/I'm younger than that now". Would have been better for me to have been playing ball with Biff and Jack or pursuing Susie.
The line that really got me was about how the man "lived in house, within a room, within himself..." That is exactly how I am now, in my life. I am a student and I go to campus each day where I'm surrounded by hundreds of people, I live with roommates and I work a part time job, but I talk to no one. No one relies on me because I rely on no one for anything. Not for love, not for a conversation, or even a friendly nod. The friends I have I seldom speak to, and if I do, it's about nothing important to either of us. I'm a peculiar woman.